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Are you looking for an easy and delicious way to prepare your Thanksgiving turkey on a Big Green Egg? Well, this recipe is the perfect choice for you! Brining the turkey before cooking helps provide you with delicious and moist meat for you and your guests.
What is brine?
Brine is essentially a fancy term for saltwater, but don’t let its simplicity fool you. This humble concoction plays a crucial role in various cooking processes and has been used for centuries as a method of preserving food. It’s made by dissolving salt (usually kosher or sea salt) into water, creating a saline solution that enhances flavor and moisture retention in meats and vegetables alike. Beyond its preservative qualities, brine also acts as an effective tenderizer, helping to break down tough muscle fibers and resulting in juicier, more succulent dishes. From pickles to cured salmon, brining is the secret behind many beloved recipes, infusing them with that extra dimension of taste. So next time you encounter the word “brine” in a recipe, know that it’s not some magical potion; it’s simply salty water doing wonders for your taste buds.
Everything you need for a delicious bird is in the Lane’s Ultimate Turkey Brine Kit… well, everything except the turkey of course! Now sit back, grab a glass of beaujolais nouveau, and enjoy this post for Big Green Egg Brined Turkey with Lanes BBQ.
Big Green Egg Brined Turkey with Lanes BBQ
Make sure to start this process 3-days before serving and with a fully thawed turkey. You’ll need a gallon of water for an 11-pound bird at the ready for the brine mixture.
The Lane’s BBQ Ultimate Turkey Kit includes their Signature Brine, a large brining bag, SPG Seasoning, and their Spellbound Seasoning. The combination of the brine with the two rubs gives the turkey an amazing flavor.
Mix 1-cup of Lane’s signature brine with a gallon of water.
When the brine is fully dissolved, place the 11-pound turkey inside.
Remove the air from the brining bag and ensure your turkey is fully submerged. Place the sealed bag containing the brined turkey in a leak proof container and into the fridge for 24-hours.
The next day, remove the turkey, pat dry, place on a wire rack inside a baking sheet, and place uncovered in the fridge for another 24 hours to dry the skin. NOTE: this step helps get you that desired crispy skin.
After the turkey has dried in the fridge overnight take it out and cover the bird with 1 Tbsp of olive oil to act as a binder for the rubs.
Now apply a layer of Lane’s SPG all over the turkey including the cavity.
Next add a layer of Lane’s Spellbound all over the turkey including the cavity.
When the turkey looks like this, place it in a half sized aluminum pan, and get your Big Green Egg setup for this cook.
Preheat your Big Green Egg to 350°F setup for indirect cooking using your ConvEGGtor
or EGGspander
base with 2 ceramic moon inserts. I used 2 apple wood chunks to add some smoke flavor to this cook.
When the Big Green Egg is preheated and the temperature is stable, place the turkey inside.
Let the turkey cook for an hour before checking. When you check your turkey at the hour mark, melt a stick of butter and start basting the skin with the melted butter. This helps crips the skin and give it a nice golden brown color.
This cook took me 2.5 hours for an 11-pound turkey. When the breast measures 165°F internal, remove your turkey and let it rest 20 minutes before slicing.
When ready to slice, place the turkey on a cutting board and get your sharpest knife for carving this bird.
Work to remove each breast, then the drumsticks, and then the rest of the meat.
Arrange the meat on a platter and serve.
This was one of the juiciest Buddha Bite’s yet!!!
Big Green Egg Brined Turkey with Lanes BBQ
Equipment
- 1 Big Green Egg
Ingredients
- 11 pound turkey, thawed
- 1 container Lane's Ultimate Turkey Brine Kit
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 stick Butter
Instructions
- Mix 1 cup of brine with 1 gallon of water in the brining bag.
- Add the 11-pound turkey and place the bag in a food safe container.
- Place the container with the bad containing the brined turkey into the fridge for 24-hours
- Remove the bird from the brine and place it on a wire rack in the fridge overnight to dry out the skin.
- The next day, take the turkey out of the fridge and place it on the counter. Use the olive oil as a binder then generously season with the Lane's SPG and Spellbound rubs.
- Setup your Big Green Egg for indirect cooking and preheat to 350°F using apple wood chunks for smoke flavor (optional).
- Let the bird cook for 1-hour uninterrupted. Then melt 1-stick of butter and baste the turkey at the 1-hour mark to help crisp and brown the skin.
- When the bird measures 165°F in the breast, remove and rest 20 minutes before slicing. This cook took me 2.5 hours to get to 165°F.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
